Whispers and Memories
by blackXrose32
Summary: Yasmin can't stop thinking about what happened to her friend, Ryan, five years ago. Little does she know that her best friend, Bill Kaulitz, is haunted by the same memory. She and her friends and the guys of Tokio Hotel try to uncover the truth of what happened.
1. Chapter 1

**A/N: **This is my first fanfiction on this site so I hope people enjoy it. Please review and critique!

**DISCLAIMER: **I am in no way affiliated with Tokio Hotel.

After making sure Karina had a ride home, Yasmin finally left the party. Her friend Ashley had thrown someone a surprise birthday party and forced her to come even though she didn't know half the people invited. She had spent the night forcing a smile and talking with random people.

Yasmin opened the front door stepping out into the cool, refreshing night air. She started walking home relieved by the silence and glad she hadn't decided to drive there. The darkness and the quiet was welcoming and familiar, where all the daily facades fell away and masks cracked and fell to pieces revealing the real person inside…

_**Five Years Before…**_

_Walking home from school, Yasmin thought about her day. She was glad they had a substitute teacher because that always meant no homework. It also meant an hour of fooling around with her five best friends, Karina, Tom, Bill, Renee and Ashley. They had spent the entire class listening to music and arguing over what toppings they should order on their pizza for their weekly 'study' session, which usually involved watching movies, a lot of junk food and playing "truth or dare." She remembered the argument ending with Karina, Ashley and Tom yelling about whether or not pineapple should go on the pizza, Renee trying to calm them down, Bill watching them with an amused expression and her hiding behind a binder in case the fight became physical._

_Lost in thought, Yasmin didn't pay attention to her surroundings. She screamed suddenly as three fire trucks went roaring past her, followed by two ambulances, their sirens screaming. A horrific sight stopped her in her tracks. Several blocks away she could see smoke engulfing the area where the hospital was. Yasmin broke into a run, her feet racing towards the building. As she got closer she could hear screams and people shouting. She began coughing as the smoke began to drift towards her. People were running out of the building and firefighters were running in while others used hoses to try and put out the flames that were raging on the west side of the hospital. Policemen had set up barracks to keep people away from the building._

_She stood with the growing crowd watching anxiously as people discussed what had happened. As she moved through the crowd, she heard pieces of the conversations around her. Everyone was trying to tell his or her part of the story… __"__driving past when I saw the smoke__"__… __"__heard an explosion.__"__… __"__came running as fast as I could__"__… Yasmin ran up to a police officer who was arguing with a nurse: __"__I__'__m sorry miss but you can't go back in there."  
>"But what about the patients! They need help!"<br>"Our men are in there working hard to get everyone out." The policeman turned around to hold back the crowd that was pushing towards the building.  
>Yasmin tapped the nurse on the shoulder. "Excuse me, did you work in the west wing?"<br>The nurse looked at her curiously. "Yes I did."  
>"Did you know a patient by the name of Ryan Ferguson? He's a young boy about my age. He's recovering from a car accident."<br>The nurse's face creased with worry. "Yes I did. I haven't seen him come out yet though. I hope he's all right."  
>This was the news she had been afraid to hear. "Thank you," she said and turned away, her chest tightening in panic.<em>

_Yasmin watched as firefighters guided people out of the building and carried others to safety. Patients were taken to nearby ambulances and driven to another hospital. She saw news crews arriving on the scene along with more people. It was chaos everywhere._

_Just then, everyone screamed as another explosion shook the ground. Windows shattered and more smoke poured out of the building. People watched in horror as those who were trapped inside yelled for help from the broken windows. Firemen took ladders up to the windows to rescue them. Suddenly, Yasmin's breath caught in her throat—up on the second floor, in the west wing of the hospital, a young boy was yelling for help from one of the windows. Her best friend Ryan. They had been friends since they were toddlers and had grown up together. Their mothers were close friends. Before she knew what she was doing she was pushing through the crowd and leaping over the barracks. Police yelled after her but she didn't stop. She didn't know what she could do but she knew she had to help him somehow. She wouldn't abandon him. Dashing around a fireman she ran through the front door. As soon as she went inside the smoke began to surround her and her throat burned. Since she had visited Ryan in the hospital many times, she knew the way to his room. She ran towards the stairs as the smoke began to make her eyes water. It was getting hard to see. Jumping over debris she took the stairs two at a time. When she reached the second floor the smoke became overwhelming. It was getting hard to breathe. Yasmin looked around. She couldn't recognize anything in the smoke. "Ryan! Ry-an!" she yelled in desperation. Inhaling smoke and ash, she doubled over coughing. Attempting to shield her mouth and nose from the smoke she raced down the hallway to Ryan's room. She was beginning to feel dizzy due to her lack of oxygen. Focusing on the pounding of her feet and the room at the end of the hall, Yasmin kept going. Suddenly she stopped short as the ceiling three feet in front of her caved in. She fell to her knees coughing as the sudden cloud of dust, debris, and smoke engulfed her. As she tried to breathe she felt herself lifting off the floor. A fireman had come to rescue her. She tried to yell and tell him that her friend was still at the end of the hall, but she still couldn't breathe and all she could do was cough. As he carried her away towards the exit Yasmin lost consciousness._

_**Five Years Later… **_

...Yasmin's breath came out in a mist in front of her face. A cold wind blew past making her shiver. It whispered down the empty streets. She pulled her sweatshirt tighter around her. The only sound was her black converse crunching on the gravel as she walked. She looked up in time to see the full moon become obscured by a passing cloud. There were a thousand stars twinkling in the sky.

She slowed her pace as she walked past the old hospital. It had seemed so much bigger when she was younger, but now it looked fairly small. She stopped and gazed at the burned out windows. The broken glass reflected the night sky while the empty windows stared back at her with dark, fathomless eyes. Large cracks criss-crossed like lace across the walls. It had been five years since she lost her friend Ryan in the fire that had destroyed the hospital but she still had nightmares. Walking faster, she passed the ominous building without looking back.

She finally reached her house around two in the morning and mentally kicked herself for letting Karina talk her into staying longer at the party. Her parents were going to kill her. She was grounded for sure. Sighing as she quietly opened the door, she slipped inside and headed to the stairs, thankful that her parents hadn't been waiting for her. She was too tired for the lecture she would surely hear in the morning. She went into her room, too exhausted to change clothes, and collapsed on the bed, instantly drifting off to sleep.


	2. Chapter 2

…Yasmin walked angrily down the street fuming. She knew her parents would be mad about her breaking curfew but she hated it when they started talking trash about her friends and the people she hung out with. They of all people had no right to judge anybody. Putting her headphones in she turned the volume up and let the sound of "From the Inside" by Linkin Park flood her head. _"I don't know who to trust, no surprise, heavy thoughts sift through dust and the lies, trying not to break but I'm so tired of this deceit, every time I try to make myself get back up on my feet, all I ever think about is this and the tiring time between and how trying to put my trust in you just takes so much out of me, I take everything from the inside and throw it all away 'cause I swear for the last time, I won't trust myself with you__…__"_ Singing quietly along with the lyrics she glanced up at the sky. The dark, swirling clouds fit her mood perfectly. She remembered that the weatherman had mentioned thunderstorms that afternoon and it looked like he was right for once.

Yasmin walked the remaining two blocks to Ashley's house and knocked on the door. Ashley's mom let her in telling her Ashley was upstairs and that pasta would be ready in twenty minutes if they were hungry. Yasmin loved being at Ashley's house. It always had a brighter atmosphere than her own. She went upstairs to Ashley's room.

Her friend opened the door before she could knock. "Hey," she said with a grin, "I heard you downstairs. How did it go with your parents this morning?"  
>"How do you think it went?" Yasmin answered.<br>"Oh..." Ashley nodded with understanding.  
>"Yeah…" Yasmin followed her into the room.<br>"Guess what," Ashley said smiling again.  
>"What?"<br>"I finally got Skillet's new cd," she grinned.  
>Yasmin brightened instantly. "That's great!"<br>"I know! It's so good!"

They spent the next two hours just hanging out. As Yasmin flipped through one of Ashley's magazines thunder echoed outside. A flash of lightning lit up the sky making both girls jump. "Looks like we're about to get a hell of a storm," Ashley said looking out the window.  
>"Want to go for a ride?" Yasmin asked grinning.<br>"Yeah! I'll call Karina and see if she's busy." Ashley's smile reflected hers.

After picking up Karina at her house the three of them drove down to their favorite spot, a small beach at the edge of a wide, round lake with a small island in the middle. They got out of the car and walked down the path through the tall grass to a log near the water. It was eerily quiet and the dark purple clouds were pressing down on them. The three of them came to this spot often, especially during thunderstorms. There was just something relaxing about being there while rain poured down rinsing everything clean. It rinsed away any stress, anger, sorrow or unhappiness you happened to be feeling, leaving you ready to go back and face the world again.

Thunder echoed across the sky again and rain began to fall, quickly turning into a downpour. They looked at each other and started laughing, all three of them soaked to the skin despite the hoodies they wore. Suddenly Yasmin's phone rang. She dug into her pocket and held it up to her ear, keeping it sheltered inside her hood from the rain. "Hello?" she answered.

"Hey Yasmin. It's Bill."

"Bill?" Yasmin's friends looked at her in shock.

He laughed. "Yeah. I didn't think you knew anybody else who sounded this sexy. How are you?"

She rolled her eyes and smiled. "I'm okay… You? I haven't spoken to you in a while."

"I'm good." Bill answered. Another bolt of lightning illuminated the beach causing static to echo through the phone. Thunder rumbled all around them. "Where are you?"

"We're down at the beach we used to play at when we were younger."

"During a thunder storm?" he asked skeptically.

"Yes during a thunder storm. That's the best time."

"I'll take your word for it," he said laughing. "By the way, I have some good news for you!"

"What?" She could hear the excitement in his voice.

"We're coming back and we'll be in town for a week!"

Yasmin couldn't believe what she was hearing. "Oh my god are you serious? That's great!"

Bill laughed. "Yeah I know! I'm so excited and Tom is too! He can't wait to see Karina again." Bill said this last part in a whisper and a second later Yasmin heard a muffled yelp and laughter followed by what sounded like a scuffle. A moment later Bill came back on the phone laughing. "You know, I don't know why I thought Tom wouldn't hear me in a space this small."

"You're on the tour bus?" Yasmin guessed.

"Yeah and we're about to go through a tunnel so I'll lose you in a second. Why  
>don't we all meet at our favorite restaurant. Do you remember it?<p>

"Of course," she replied. The restaurant that they had all made a tradition to meet at once a week when they were younger, was down the street from her house. "When do you want us to meet you there?"

"Umm… How about two o'clock on Wednesday?"

"Okay, I'll see if I can switch shifts at work." Yasmin worked at a small CD store in town along with Karina.

"Sounds Good." he said. "See you soon."

"Bye." Yasmin closed her phone and stared at it for a second.

"They're coming here?" Ashley asked grinning. Renee and Karina's expressions instantly turned from shock to excitement.

"Yes!" Yasmin said happily.

"Well this will definitely make spring break more interesting." Renee said. 


	3. Chapter 3

After Ashley dropped her off at home Yasmin went up to her room. Walking over to the window she looked out through the sheeting rain. Three days and she would get to see Bill and Tom again.

**Bill's POV **

Bill's smile faded as he closed the phone. He was vaguely aware of Tom telling Georg and Gustav another story about the small town they had lived in for a year when they were fourteen. He stared dejectedly out the window at the lights of the tunnel. As much as he didn't want to, he knew he had to go back and find answers. He couldn't bear another night of the nightmares that haunted him. The lights flashing by the windows of the bus reminded him of the fires that imprisoned his thoughts each night.

_**The Next Day**_

"Karina, I swear if you don't stop bouncing I'm going to glue you to the chair."

Karina rolled her eyes at Yasmin's empty threat. "What time is it?" she asked impatiently.

"2:20," Renee answered. "You would think they would learn to be on time after all these years."

"Well I hope they hurry up. Yasmin and I have to be back at work by three." Karina said.

The four girls were at the restaurant waiting for the guys. Yasmin looked around. Sunlight was streaming through the large window next to them and it bathed everything in a golden light. Even though she hadn't been there in ages, the restaurant was still welcoming and familiar. She remembered coming here to meet her friends when she was younger and she smiled at the memories. They had had a lot of good times here.

She glanced at the door just in time to see a very familiar face come through. He was followed by another who turned and met her eyes. Pulling the arm of his tall dark-haired brother, Tom walked over to their table. He and Bill were grinning as they came over to join them, but despite his make-up Yasmin could see the dark circles under Bill's eyes. He looked tired, probably from touring so much. Georg and Gustav followed them. Although she had never met them she had heard a lot about them. The girls jumped up and the next few minutes involved a lot of hugs and laughs and introductions as Bill and Tom introduced them to their band mates. After they had finally sat down and squeezed themselves into the small booth, a waitress came over to take their order.

"We don't have much time so why don't we just order a couple appetizers to share?" Karina suggested.

After they all agreed and placed their order Tom asked, "What's the hurry?"

"Yasmin and I have to be back at work by three. It's not our fault you guys refuse to be on time." Karina teased, picking up a menu.

"Oh shut up." Bill interrupted playfully. "If I remember correctly you were late for everything. Remember the time you showed up an hour late for your own birthday party?"

"That was your fault!" Karina retorted. "You're the one who pushed me into the pool and messed up my whole outfit and my hair!"

"Well I don't see why you needed to do your hair if you were having a pool party anyway," Bill snickered. Karina glared at him.

"He has a point," Ashley said laughing.

"Couldn't we have gotten a larger booth?" Georg complained after a moment.

"This has been our usual spot ever since we first started coming here." Renee said. "It's not our fault some people have gotten fat," she teased looking at Bill.

"Yeah whatever." He scoffed. Everyone laughed.

After the waitress brought their order the guys talked about the last city they were in and the concert they had done the night before. Bill mentioned that they had driven by the old hospital on their way to the restaurant. Yasmin shivered. "That place still gives me the creeps."

"Yeah no kidding." Bill agreed. "I got goosebumps when we passed it."

"Some people claim its haunted. Honestly, I don't believe that at all. It was destroyed in a gas explosion. There's nothing creepy about that." Renee said. She was always the logical one.

Ashley disagreed. "Did you ever wonder why they never tore it down? Every time a construction crew got close to it strange things happened."

"Like what," Tom asked.

"Weird accidents, strange noises, and the cranes and bulldozers would stop working when they got close to the building. It's like something doesn't want it to be torn down."

Renee rolled her eyes. "Those are all just stories. Maybe the town doesn't have enough money or resources to tear the place down. I'm sure there are more important things that have to be taken care of besides an old abandoned building."

"I still think the place is haunted," Ashley said  
>Karina agreed.<p>

"Why don't we just go check it out?" Georg joked.

"No!" Bill said loudly. Everyone stared at him. "I don't think that's a good idea," he said more quietly. He looked troubled.

"Scared?" Tom teased. Bill glared at him. "I was just kidding. What's wrong with you?" he demanded.

"Nothing." Bill muttered. "It's almost three o'clock. Don't you and Karina have somewhere you have to be?" Bill asked looking at Yasmin.

"Um yeah. We should probably get back to work," Yasmin said getting up.

"Yeah," Karina agreed. "We should meet up again though. We barely got to spend any time together."

"How about we meet at my house tonight?" Ashley suggested. "My parents won't mind."

"Sounds good to me." Tom said, grinning. Georg and Gustav agreed and Bill smiled tentatively.

"I guess we'll see you later then." Renee said getting up.

"It was nice to finally meet all of you in person." Gustav said smiling. Georg agreed.

"Want a ride?" Bill offered.

"No we're fine," Yasmin said. "The CD store is a few blocks away."

"And Renee and I drove here." Ashley added.

After saying goodbye and agreeing to meet at Ashley's house later, Karina and Yasmin headed back to work. On the way there they talked about seeing the guys again and Bill's sudden mood swing.

"Why do you think he snapped like that?" Karina wondered.

"I don't know. He looked tired. Maybe he's just stressed out. I'm sure he'll be fine after he gets some rest."


	4. Chapter 4

After work, Karina and Yasmin walked to Ashley's house. They had called their parents earlier to let them know they were sleeping over. By this time it was eight o'clock and the sun had already set. The sky had darkened to navy blue and stars filled the night sky.

"Do you think we should pick up some snacks or something?" Karina asked as they walked down the sidewalk.

"Well if Bill and Tom have the appetite I remember, then we probably should." Yasmin said smiling. "We could pick up some food from Deno's on the way there." Deno's was the small convenience store near Ashley's house.

The girls walked in to the brightly lit store heading for the drinks first. The place was mostly empty. After debating over what to get they grabbed a couple bottles of soda before splitting up to get snacks. Yasmin headed towards the candy aisle while Karina went to get some chips and popcorn. With her mind deep in thought about the reunion with her friends, Karina didn't notice someone come up behind her until they grabbed her around the waist. She jumped in shock and nearly dropped the bottles she was holding. She shot Tom a dirty look while he doubled over with laughter. "I couldn't resist," he said grinning.

"What are you even doing here?" she asked exasperated.

"We got hungry and decided to walk down and grab some food." He explained. "Bill, Georg and Gustav are around here somewhere."

"Yasmin's here too. We came to pick up some food. Since you're here you can help," she said handing him the soda. "At least that will you give something to do besides scaring the hell out of me."

"Aw but it's so much fun, " he teased.

"Yeah, yeah, whatever," she said turning away to grab some popcorn. Just then Gustav came careening around the corner pushing a carriage with Georg inside. Tom and Karina burst out laughing as they nearly crashed into the shelves. They started grabbing various bags of chips and snacks and dumped them in the basket on top of Georg. Tom put the soda in and Karina tossed in the popcorn, narrowly missing Georg's head.

"Who's idea was this?" Tom asked.

"Gustav's of course." Georg said grinning.

After they had all the food they wanted they headed to the cash register. Meanwhile Yasmin had run into a frustrated Bill in the candy aisle. "Having trouble?" she asked smiling, knowing all too well Bill's addiction to sweets. He looked up in surprise. "What are doing here?"

"Shopping for junk, same as you," she answered. "Where—"

"Skittles or Jelly beans?" he interrupted.

"Umm skittles," she answered watching Bill grab five packs of skittles before she even answered the question.

"Hold this," he commanded giving them to her along with at least a dozen different chocolate bars.

"Where are all the others?" she asked.

"Tom, Gustav and Georg are here somewhere. Ashley's back at the house waiting for Renee." He said standing with his hands on his hips looking intently at the colorful rows of candy. Yasmin watched him and stifled a giggle. She forgot how much fun it was hanging out with him.

This continued on for a good ten minutes with the two of them playfully arguing over what candy to buy. After a while Yasmin realized she couldn't hold any more candy.

"Oh come on you can carry a little more," Bill said when she told him.

"Here's an idea. Why don't you carry some?" Yasmin said.

"That's ok," Bill said grinning.

"Whatever. Let's just go to the cash register." She said already walking past him. He followed with his hands in his pockets. They went to the cash register and saw Tom, Karina, Georg and Gustav waiting by the door. Karina raised her eyebrows at the mountain of candy Bill had suckered Yasmin into carrying. "Don't ask," Yasmin said before Karina could ask questions. She dumped the pile on the checkout counter. Bill snickered. The cashier looked at them questioningly but didn't say anything as he began to ring everything up.

"I hope you brought money with you," she said looking at Bill.

"What? I thought you were going to pay for it?" Bill said innocently, then upon seeing the look on her face, he added quickly, "Just kidding." Yasmin rubbed her temples. This was supposed to be a simple trip to the store.

After all the candy had finally been bagged and paid for the six of them headed out the door and continued on to Ashley's house.


End file.
